Neil Shubin

The bestselling author of Your Inner Fish takes readers on an epic adventure to the North and South Poles to reveal the secrets locked in the ice about life, the cosmos, and our planet's future. "Urgent and] prescient...The book captures Shubin's reverence for both the beauty and the mysteries hidden in the cold, barren tundra."--The New Yorker Renowned scientist Neil Shubin has made extraordinary discoveries by leading scientific expeditions to the sweeping ice landscapes of the Arctic and Antarctic. He's survived polar storms, traveled in temperatures that can freeze flesh in seconds, and worked hundreds of miles from the nearest humans, all to deepen our understanding of our world. Written with infectious enthusiasm and irresistible curiosity, Ends of the Earth blends travel writing, science, and history in a book brimming with surprising and wonderful discoveries. Shubin retraces his steps on a "dinosaur dance floor," showing us where these beasts had populated the once tropical lands at the poles. He takes readers meteor hunting, as meteorites preserved in the ice can be older than our planet and can tell us about our galaxy's formation. Readers also encounter insects and fish that develop their own anti-freeze, and aquatic life in ancient lakes hidden miles under the ice that haven't seen the surface in centuries. It turns out that explorers and scientists have found these extreme environments as prime ground for making scientific breakthroughs across a vast range of knowledge. Shubin shares unforgettable moments from centuries of expeditions to reveal just how far scientists will go to understand polar regions. In the end, what happens at the poles does not stay in the poles--the ends of the earth offer profound stories that will forever change our view of life and the entire planet.

An exciting and accessible new view of the evolution of human and animal life on Earth. From the author of national bestseller, Your Inner Fish, this extraordinary journey of discovery spans centuries, as explorers and scientists seek to understand the origins of life's immense diversity. "Fossils, DNA, scientists with a penchant for suits of armor--what's not to love?"--BBC Wildlife Magazine Over billions of years, ancient fish evolved to walk on land, reptiles transformed into birds that fly, and apelike primates evolved into humans that walk on two legs, talk, and write. For more than a century, paleontologists have traveled the globe to find fossils that show how such changes have happened. We have now arrived at a remarkable moment--prehistoric fossils coupled with new DNA technology have given us the tools to answer some of the basic questions of our existence: How do big changes in evolution happen? Is our presence on Earth the product of mere chance? This new science reveals a multibillion-year evolutionary history filled with twists and turns, trial and error, accident and invention. In Some Assembly Required, Neil Shubin takes readers on a journey of discovery spanning centuries, as explorers and scientists seek to understand the origins of life's immense diversity.

An exciting and accessible new view of the evolution of human and animal life on Earth. From the author of national bestseller, Your Inner Fish, this extraordinary journey of discovery spans centuries, as explorers and scientists seek to understand the origins of life's immense diversity. "Fossils, DNA, scientists with a penchant for suits of armor--what's not to love?"--BBC Wildlife Magazine Over billions of years, ancient fish evolved to walk on land, reptiles transformed into birds that fly, and apelike primates evolved into humans that walk on two legs, talk, and write. For more than a century, paleontologists have traveled the globe to find fossils that show how such changes have happened. We have now arrived at a remarkable moment--prehistoric fossils coupled with new DNA technology have given us the tools to answer some of the basic questions of our existence: How do big changes in evolution happen? Is our presence on Earth the product of mere chance? This new science reveals a multibillion-year evolutionary history filled with twists and turns, trial and error, accident and invention. In Some Assembly Required, Neil Shubin takes readers on a journey of discovery spanning centuries, as explorers and scientists seek to understand the origins of life's immense diversity.

The Universe Within is a thrilling journey from today all the way back to the Big Bang, which shows the deep connections between the human body and the universe, from Neil Shubin, author of Your Inner FishWhat links the birth of the moon to our body clocks? How did the creation of the Atlantic Ocean affect how we have children? What does the water inside us and on Earth have to do with the deepest stretches of space? Humanity's status in the cosmos can seem insignificant. Yet, as Neil Shubin shows, the one place where the universe, solar system and planet merge is inside your body. Exploring the smallest atomic structures and vastest reaches of space, Shubin uncovers a sublime truth: that in every one of us lies the most profound story of all - how we and our world came to be.Neil Shubin is a palaeontologist in the great tradition of his mentors, Ernst Mayr and Stephen Jay Gould. He has discovered fossils around the world that have changed the way we think about many of the key transitions in evolution and has pioneered a new synthesis of expeditionary palaeontology, developmental genetics and genomics. He trained at Columbia, Harvard and Berkeley and is currently a Professor in the Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy at the University of Chicago.'A new, fresh way of telling the story of life, the universe and everything ... hugely enjoyable' Tim Radford, Guardian'Shubin is not only a distinguished scientist, but a wonderfully lucid and elegant writer; he is an irrepressibly enthusiastic teacher ... a science writer of the first rank' Oliver Sacks'Glorious, uplifting ... It tracks the very atoms in our bodies back to the Big Bang, and shows how all the molecules that comprise us have roots in the formation of Earth ... What is special about the book is its sweep, its scope, its panorama' Wall Street Journal

A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the YearIn The Universe Within, Neil Shubin reveals the connection between the evolution of the cosmos and the evolution of the human body. Just as the history of the earth is written in the rocks, so too is the universe's 14-billion-year history written in the human body. Starting at the smallest level, with our very molecular composition, Shubin explores the question of why we are the way we are, tracing the formation of the planets, the moon, and the globe of Earth through the development of the organs, cells, and genes that make up human life.

Neil Shubin's Your Inner Fish is the unexpected story of how one creature's journey out of the water made the human body what it is today - and one man's voyage of discovery in search of our origins. Have you ever wondered why our bodies look and work and fail the way they do? One of the world's leading experts in evolutionary history, Neil Shubin reveals the secrets of our biology: why if we want to understand our limbs we should take a close look at Tiktaalik, the first fish capable of doing a push-up; why if we want to know why we hiccup, the answer is in the way fish breathe; and why it is that fish teeth are surprisingly similar to human breasts. 'This would be Darwin's book of the year' Sunday Telegraph 'An intelligent, exhilarating, and compelling scientific adventure story' Oliver Sacks, author of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat 'Delightful ... his enthusiasm is infectious' Steven D. Levitt, author of Freakonomics 'Profoundly fascinating ... a magisterial work ... expressed so clearly and with such good humour' Financial Times 'Will make you think about your organs in ways you have never considered before' Sunday Times Neil Shubin is a palaeontologist in the great tradition of his mentors, Ernst Mayr and Stephen Jay Gould. He has discovered fossils around the world that have changed the way we think about many of the key transitions in evolution and has pioneered a new synthesis of expeditionary palaeontology, developmental genetics and genomics. He trained at Columbia, Harvard and Berkeley and is currently Chairman of the Department of Anatomy at the University of Chicago.

The paleontologist and professor of anatomy who co-discovered Tiktaalik, the "fish with hands," tells a "compelling scientific adventure story that will change forever how you understand what it means to be human" (Oliver Sacks). By examining fossils and DNA, he shows us that our hands actually resemble fish fins, our heads are organized like long-extinct jawless fish, and major parts of our genomes look and function like those of worms and bacteria. Your Inner Fish makes us look at ourselves and our world in an illuminating new light. This is science writing at its finest--enlightening, accessible and told with irresistible enthusiasm.

Meet the scientists uncovering the secrets of Earth's harshest environments – the polar regions SHORTLISTED FOR THE ROYAL SOCIETY TRIVEDI SCIENCE BOOK PRIZE 2025 AN ECONOMIST BOOK OF THE YEAR 'Thrilling... This book is a reminder of how incredibly "cool" our planet can be, and how we must fight to protect it.' Nick Mohammed Frigid, remote and inhospitable – the polar regions seem far removed from our everyday lives. But these seemingly isolated ice realms shape life on our planet far more than we realise, influencing everything from the climate to ocean health. They may even hold the secrets to the origins of the Earth. Taking an epic journey of discovery from pole-to-pole, ferrying between penguins and polar bears, Ends of the Earth reveals the polar regions as never before. Meeting with the leading physicists, climatologists, geologists, biologists and palaeontologists working in these extremes – often as eccentric as they are intrepid – Neil Shubin presents the compelling new science of the Arctic and Antarctic with characteristic verve and expertise. *** 'A fast-moving, fascinating book that combines travelogue and natural science discovery... a delightful and compelling read.' Daniel J. Levitin, author of The Organised Mind 'Gripping... Shubin’s captivating storytelling will give you a new appreciation for some of the harshest and most mysterious places on Earth.' Steve Brusatte, author of The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs 'What a remarkable planet we live on – wildest at its cold and lovely poles. This compelling volume should summon us to defend that cold, the vital task for our time on earth.' Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature 'Fascinating. Important.' Spectator

Meet the scientists uncovering the secrets of Earth's harshest environments – the polar regions 'A fast-moving, fascinating book that combines travelogue and natural science discovery... a delightful and compelling read.' Daniel J. Levitin, author of The Organised Mind Frigid, remote and inhospitable – the polar regions seem far removed from our everyday lives. But these seemingly isolated ice realms shape life on our planet far more than we realise, influencing everything from the climate to ocean health. They may even hold the secrets to the origins of the Earth. Taking an epic journey of discovery from pole-to-pole, ferrying between penguins and polar bears, Ends of the Earth reveals the polar regions as never before. Meeting with the leading physicists, climatologists, geologists, biologists and palaeontologists working in these extremes – often as eccentric as they are intrepid – Neil Shubin presents the compelling new science of the Arctic and Antarctic with characteristic verve and expertise. *** 'Gripping... Shubin’s captivating storytelling will give you a new appreciation for some of the harshest and most mysterious places on Earth.' Steve Brusatte, author of The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs 'What a remarkable planet we live on – wildest at its cold and lovely poles. This compelling volume should summon us to defend that cold, the vital task for our time on earth.' Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature 'Fascinating. Important.' Spectator

‘Intimate and thoughtful… Exciting… [A] sweeping evolutionary history.’ Science The author of the bestselling Your Inner Fish gives us a brilliant, up-to-date account of the great transformations in the history of life on Earth. This is a story full of surprises. If you think that feathers arose to help animals fly, or lungs to help them walk on land, you’d be in good company. You’d also be entirely wrong. Neil Shubin delves deep into the mystery of life, the ongoing revolutions in our understanding of how we got here, and brings us closer to answering one of the great questions – was life on earth inevitable…or was it all an accident?

"Der Mensch ist ein Tier unter Tieren, Ergebnis einer Milliarde Jahre dauernden Evolution. Spuren und Reste dieser Entwicklung sind in unserem Körper aufbewahrt, in der Form unserer Knochen, der Struktur unserer DNA. Ein ganzer Zweig des Baum des Lebens ist tief in uns eingelassen. "Der Fisch in uns" erzählt die spannende Geschichte, wie unser Körper so geworden ist, wie wir ihn kennen. Anhand neuester Ergebnisse aus Paläontologie und der vergleichenden DNA-Forschung schildert Neil Shubin anschaulich und packend die Evolution aus der Perspektive des menschlichen Körpers und zeigt ihren außerordentlichen Einfluss über 3,5 Milliarden Jahre. Dabei wird deutlich: Wir haben viel mehr mit Fischen, Würmern oder Bakterien gemeinsam, als uns bewusst ist."